Still walking after all these years...

Still walking after all these years..

 Above you see us with our old friend Alex Gullo at one of our favorite eateries here in Ortigia - Osteria Sveva.

Zio Lorenzo first met Alex at a mail drop in Southern California around 1995 while working full-time for "those other guys". 

We hit it off pretty quickly, doing the "You fly, I'll buy!" thing with Lorenzo riding off on his bike to come back with espresso since Alex couldn't just leave the place unmanned. "Make sure they pack it tight and don't run the water too long!" were Alex' instructions. Eventually someone gave him a machine and Lorenzo happily supplied the coffee so they could make and enjoy it there.

They eventually rode home one evening with Alex following along on his beat-up Lazzaretti bike. Lorenzo had some wheels and other parts, though used were upgrades for what was on the bike so the idea was to replace them, get the bike running right and why not stay for dinner as well?

Heather liked him too, so we stayed in touch and when it was time to move to Iowa Alex came along with Lorenzo in the truck with our furniture inside.

Alex eventually made his way back to Italy and met the love of his life who we met shortly after during some free time we had in Italy. Alessandro and Rachele went on to have seven children, the youngest now being 12!

By then he was a tour guide too, though on two feet instead of two wheels, becoming a licensed expert in Assisi (where he produced a fantastic tour for Heather's study-abroad program a few years ago) Sicily and Siena.

He's here in Siracusa now, winding up an 8-night walking tour for a group on a private basis. We were happy to learn his walking tour biz has bounced back very strongly after the lockdowns as vaccines and other measures combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

Buon lavoro Alex!